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Egypt
Ǧumhūriyyat Miṣr al-ʿArabiyyah |flag= |COA= |map= |capital= Cairo |languages= Arabic |demonym= Egyptian |establishment= -Unified state: c. 3100 BC -Independence from the United Kindom: February 28, 1922 -Republican regime: June 18, 1953 -Provisional Constitution: March 30, 2011 |GDP-PPP-total= $496,604 billion |GDP-PPP-pc= $6,347 |GDP-nomin= $215,845 billion |GDP-nomin-pc= $2,758 |currency= Egyptian pound ( ) }} Egypt ( /ˈiːdʒɪpt/; مصر, Miṣr Arabic: mesˤɾ; Egyptian Arabic: mɑsˤɾ; Coptic: Ⲭⲏⲙⲓ Kīmi), officially known as the Arab Republic of Egypt is a modern country located in North Africa and Southeast Asia, thus being a transcontinental country. The economy of Egypt is one of the most diversified of all the countries in the Middle East, with sectors including tourism, agriculture, industry, and service at almost equal production levels. Etymology Numismatic history Prehistory Ancient Egypt stater during the reign of Nectanebo II.]] Most of Ancient Egyptian economy was centrally organized and controlled in a very strict manner. Though the Ancient Egyptians did not use coinage until the late period, a type of money-barter system was establishedMeskell (2004) p. 23, with sacks of grain and the deben, a weight of approximately 91 grams (3 ounces) of copper or silver, creating a common denominator.Manuelian (1998) p. 372 Workers were usually paid in sacks of grain; a simple laborer could earn 5 sacks (200 kilograms or 400 pounds) of grain monthly, while a foreman would make about 7 sacks (250 kilograms or 550 pounds) in the same amount of time. Prices across the nation were fixed and recorded by lists to make trading easier; for example, a shirt would cost 5 copper deben, while a cow would cost 140 deben. Grain was traded for other goods, which were in accordance to the fixed price list. During the 5th century BC, coined money was introduced to Ancient Egypt by foreigners. At first, coins were used as standardized pieces of precious metal rather than money, but during the following centuries, international traders began relying upon coined currency. From 360 to 342, Nectanebo II issued a stater made of gold that was likely used as payment for military personnel. Ptolemaic Egypt :See also: Ptolemaic Kingdom .]] Ptolemaic Egypt was founded by Ptolemy I Soter during 305 BC. The coins used during this time featured the leaders and important people of the Ptolemaic Kingdom. These include King Ptolemy I and his ancestors, as well as the queens of Egypt married to the kings. Roman Egypt on a coin.]] After the annexation of Ptolemaic Egypt, the Roman province of Aegyptus was developed. The economic resources used by Roman Egypt had not changed since the time of Ptolemaic Egypt, but the development of a complex and sophisticated taxation system was a notable characteristic of the Roman rule. Taxes in both cash and objects were given on land being collected by appointed officials. Large amounts of grain grown in Egypt was shipped downriver to feed the people in Alexandria and for export to Rome. Despite the several complaints of oppression and extortion from the taxpayers, official taxrates were rather low. In fact, the government of Rome had encouraged privatization of land and the increase of private enterprises in manufacturing, commerce, and trade, and low tax rates were given to private owners and entrepeneurs. Poorer people gained their livelihood as tenants of state-owned land or of property belonging to the emperor or to wealthy private landlords, and they were relatively much more heavily burdened by rentals, which tended to remain at a fairly high level. Over, the amount of monetarization and complexity of the economy was intense, even at village level. Goods were moved around the state and exchanged through the coin medium on a large scale. Muslim Egypt :See also: Arab and Ottoman Egypt, Fatimid dinar from 1101.]] The first three caliphs of the Fatimid Caliphate began to issue coins composed of gold and silver displayed accepted Sunni legends. The Fatimid coins were issued in the cities of Kairouan, Mahdia, and Al-Mansuriya. Later coins then emphasized their belief in Shia Islam, declaring a bond to Ali. The design of the coin was changed to an experimental design, and production of the coins got so large that the Fatimid dinar became the most widespread coin used for trade around the Mediterranean.Ismailmail After the conquering of the Fatimid Caliphate in 1169, the Ayyubid dynasty circulated its own coined money until the reign of the Bahri and Burji dynasties. These dynasties were eventually taken over by the Ottoman Egypt. Muhammad Ali dynasty banknote, issued in 1899.]] After the reign of the Muhammad Ali dynasty began in 1805, a new currency, the Egyptian piastre (subdivided into 40 para, each equalling 3 akce). It remained the currency of the dynasty until 1834, when a Royal Decree was issued providing the circulation of Egyptian currency is based on a bimetallic base. It was subsequently replaced by the Egyptian pound, though the piastre remained in circulation as of a pound, being divided into 40 para. During 1885, the para's circulation was ceased and the piastre was divided into tenths. These were known as malleem (milliems) in 1916. The National Bank of Egypt began to print banknotes on April 3, 1899, which was later unified to the Central Bank of Egypt during 1961. Modern Egypt coin.]] Since the introduction of the Egyptian pound in 1834, the currency of Egypt still remains the same. In 1961, after the Central Bank of Egypt took over from the National Bank of Egypt, notes were issued in the denominations of 25 and 50 piastres and 1 and 5 pounds. In 1976, 10 and 20 pound notes were introduced, soon followed by 100 pound banknotes in 1978, the 50 pounds in 1993, and 200 pounds in 2007.http://www.nachthund.biz/CatalogUpdate/Egypt/EgyptIndex.html accessed 2007-04-24 During December 2006, it was mentioned in newspaper articles that there were plans to introduce 200 and 500 pound banknotes. As of 2007, the 200 pound notes have been circulating in Egypt, and subsequently, 500 pound notes will begin circulating. As of summer 2009, production of banknotes equalling 1 pound and pound will be ceased, being replaced by coins, which are used more frequently with these small values. Presumably, the circulation of pound notes will be ceased as well.